Clothes-pressing machine



July 7, 1925. 1,544,845

c. H. LEWIS CLOTHES FRESSING MACHINE Filed Jan. 2, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 July 7, 1925;

1,544,845 c. H. LEWIS CLOTHES PRESSING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 2, 1924 7 7 I 4 IIIII I I I/IIIIII I Patented July 7, 1925.

CHARLES H. LEWIS, 01 SYRACUSE, NEW YORK.

CLOTHES-PRESSIN G MACHINE.

Application filed January 2, 1924. Serial No. 883,906.

To all it may concem:

Be it known that I, .CHARLns H. LEWIS, a

.citizen of the United States, residing at Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga and State ofNew York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clothes- Pressing Machines, of which the following I 'is a specification.

This invention-relates to improvements in clothes pressing machines, designed particularly for use by laundries, factories, and the like, for vpressing and ironing wash-fabrics, such as shirts, waists, and similar light gar ments and cloths.

The object of the invention is to provide an extremely plain, simple and noiseless power pressing mechanismof. the class, which requires the least possible labor and attention on the part of the attendant, and which may be operated by the common heating and power medium which generally obtains in plants of the class.

The pressing machine comprises mainly a stationary buck, and a relatively movable Presser-head, said parts having heating chambers adjacent the pressing surfaces, which are arranged to be supplied with steam, or other hot fluid, from a common source, such as a-boiler, and wherein the pressing surfaces of the buck and head are preferably plain, imperforate and smooth, \for effecting substantially the same smooth and even finish heretofore produced by the common hand-operated irons; but in shorter time and by less labor, and without danger of unduly stretching, distorting and wearing the fabrics, due to the frictional action of the old-style hand-irons. A further object is to provide automatic means, controlled entirely by the vertical movements of the resser-head, for spraying the garments with live steam before as well as after, the pressing is effected. A further object is to provide novel fluid pressure actuated means, for operating the resser-head, and for holding said head at the extremes of its strokes, thefluid pressure preferably being derived from the same source that heats the head and buck and sprays the garments, thereby effecting a considerable economy, as well as more constant, adequate and reliable power, as compared with pressing outfits that are operated by independent and unrelated heating and operating mediums. A further object is to provide a novel and simple manual control, for setting in motion the automatic pressing mechanism, and for effecting the release of the pressing parts,

whereby one operator may readily attend two or three machines, in the time heretofore required to operate a single, foot-power; pressing machine, and with a minimumof! physical exertion, the said control beingbperable, at the will of the attendant, for ef fecting a succession of short vertical movements of the head, for the purpose of fanning and drying the garments carried by the buck, either before or after they havebeen pressed, and. the said control being operable for stopping the head at different polnts between the extremes of its strokes, for readjusting or re-pressing the garments. And a further object is to generally improve and simplify the construction, arrangement and operation of laundry and other pressing machines of the class.

The various features and parts of the invention will be understood from the detailed description which follows, and by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which?- Figure 1 is a side elevation of the complete machine. Fig. 2 is a central longitudinal section through the presser-head, taken on line 22 of Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a bottom face view. of the presser-head showing the interior construction in dotted lines. Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the machine, with parts broken away for clearly showing the actuating mechanism. Fig. 5 is a transverse Vertical section, taken on line'55 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is an end elevation of the head and buck, showing pressing pads between the parts. Fig. 7 is a. vertical section, taken 'on line 77 of Fig. 1. Fig. 8 is afragmentary view of the table, showing corrugations in the slot for frictionally holding the operating lever. Fig. 9 is a view, showing means for spraying the buck with steam. And Fig. 10 is a broken viewof the rocking beam and the mechanism that controls the spray- I ing parts. In the drawings, 2 represents the frame, comprising front and rear uprights 22",

. the top of the latter being forked, as shown at 22' in Figs. 4 and 7. The uprights are preferably tied together by integral crossparts 2", 2 and 2 and constitute a solid onepart frame. 3 represents the usual garment support or table, which is mounted on the part 2*. 4 represents a standard, which rises from the part 2", upon which is mounted the hollow stationary buck 5. The buck,

according to the present showing, has a curved pressing face 5', which preferably tapers from end to end, and beneath the said face is the usual heating chamber 5, which is supplied with steam, or'other hot fluid, by a pipe 6. The exhaust steam is carriedfrom the buck by a pipe 6, the latter discharging into a return pipe 6, which preferably leads back to the boiler. 7 represents the vertically movable resser-head, comprising a hollow body having a concave pressing face 7, which also tapers from end to end. Above the pressing face the head is formed with a heating chamber 7*, which is partially divided longitudinally by a wall 7", and the portion of said chamber at one side of the said wall is divided transversely by a short wall 7 (see Figs. 3 and 5). The chamber 7 is supplied with steam by a pipe 8, and the exhaust steam is carried away from the head by a pipe 8'. On entering the chamber 7*, the steam follows the course of the arrows in Fig. 3, thereby making a complete circuit of the Wall 7 and heating the whole head. The resser-head is moved vertically, towards and away from the buck, by means of a curved beam 9, whose top-end is forked, and its arms 9 are secured to the head, by bolts 9. The beam 9 is rigidly mounted upon a hollow shaft 10, which is rotatable to the'extent required to operate the beam, in bearings formed in the arms 2*2 of the frame2 (see Fig. 7) The beam 9 is preferably crescent-shaped, as shown, for facilitating its connection with the head 7, and with the actuating parts, in a manner to save space, and also to eliminate extra parts. The shaft 10 preferably comprises similar alining sections 10'10, whose inner ends are supported by a hollow fitting 10", the latter having similar upwardly fac ing outlets 10, to which the pipes 8-8' connect (see Fig. 7). The steam for heating the head and buck is supplied by a pipe 12, which connects with the section 10' of the shaft 10, by means of a T 12', the pipe 12 being provided with a cook 12, for controlling the said fiuid. When the cook 12 is open, the steam flows from the section 10 of the shaft 10 into pipe 8, around the chamber 7, and back through the pipe 8 to the section 10*, and thence via the pipe 6 to the buck 5, as explained. The pipe 6 connects with the section 10, by means of a T 10, from which rises a pipe 10, that supports the usual steam-gauge 10. From the foregoing, it will be understood that the steam for heating the pressing parts flows from the pipe 12, through the head and buck and thence back to its source, in a continuous stream, and with very little waste or loss of temperature.

The head 7 is raised and lowered, as shown by the full and dotted lines in Fig. 1, by a fluid pressure actuated mechanism which will now be described: 13 represents a rod, which is pivoted to the lower end 9 of the beam 9, the said rod supporting and being reciprocated by a double piston 14, which is operable in a cylinder 14'. The piston 14 is reciprocated by steam received from the pipe 12, by means of a branch-pipe 12, a four-way cook 15, and pipes 15' and 15; the latter pipes being arranged to alternately conduct the steam to the opposite ends of cylinder 14. The exhaust from the opposite ends of the cylinder is carried away by a common pipe 15. The cook 15 is operated directly by a lever 15, which is rocked, as shown by the full and dotted lines in Fig. 1, by means of a link 16, which I in turn is operated by means of a vertically disposed hand-lever 17. The lower end of lever 17 is pivoted to the front frame upright 2', by a pin 17. The top end of lever 17 extends through a transverse slot 3 formed in the table 3; and is provided with a knob 17, by which the lever may be manipulated. The full lines in Fig. 1 show the pistons 14, as after they have been moved towards the right, by the steam entering the cylinder through pipe 15', which is the position of said parts during the pressing of the garments between the head 7 and the buck 5 (see full lines Figs. 1, 4, 5 and 6). To release the head and permit the same to be .elevated, for removing and changing the garments, the operator grasps the knob 17 and pulls the lever, as from the full to the dotted line position, shown in Fig. 1. This reverses the valve 15, and sends the steam pressure through the pipe 15, into the right hand end of the cylinder 14', and drives the pistons 14 towards the left, for correspondingly rocking the beam 9 and lifting the head 7, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 1. The pipes 6---6' are connected by means of a T 6, and to the latter is also connected a waste pipe 6', in which is disposed a valve 6".

The pipe 6 connects with the exhaust pipe 15, and is only employed at intervals for blowing-out the head and buck. Ordinarily, the valve 6 remains closed during the pressing operations, so that the waste steam from the buck may be returned to the boiler. The exhaust from the cylinder 14 usually escapes to the atmosphere.

A very important and valuable feature of the present invention consists in sprayin the garments, after they have been placed onthe buck 5, with live steam. Heretofore, it has been the custom to provide the pressing surfaces of the heads, as 7 with a relatively large number of very small perforations, through which the steam, by which the head is heated, issues in the form of a vapor-like spray during the pressing strokes of the head, the steam for this purpose usually being controlled by a separate valve,

that had to be operated by. the attendant of the machine, after the head descended to the buck, thereby increasing the labor and delaying the pressing operations. This old method of spraying the garments withsteam taken from the presser head has always been unsatisfactory, for the reason that the said steam, after circulating within the head,

tends to condense and thereby loses more or less of its dryness, and therefore the said spray contains an excess of moisture, which Wets, rather than dries out, the garments, to such extent that the goods frequently have to be re-pressed and re-dried, in order to put them in proper condition.

In the present machine, provision is made for spraying the garments before they have been pressed, by means of an entirely separate, independent and automatic mechanism, whereby the driest steam supplied by the plant is drawn directly from the source, and wherein all danger of the condensation of the steam is eliminated. My improved spraying mechanism consists of the following parts: 18 is a manifold, whichis mounted adjacent and partially overhangs, the front margin of the pressing surface of the head 7, the said manifold comprising two independent chambers, as 18' and 18, which parallel each other. The chamber 18 is charged with steam, for normally heating the manifold, from the chamber 7 of the head, by means of a pipe 18". The chamber 18'' is charged with live or dry steam, which is obtained from the'pipe 8, the said steam passing through a T 19 and a pipe 19 to a valve 20, and thence to the chamber 18, by

means of a pipe 20. The pipe 19' is provided with a cook 19, by which the spraying pressure may be controlled. The valve 20 is openedby the rocking of the beam, but the valve 19 must be opened manually by the operator in order to supply the spraying steam for the valve 20 to control. The bottom of the chamber 18 is provided with a number of alining perforations or slits 18, through which the steam issues, for spraying the garments spread upon the buck 5, as best seen in Fig. 9. The valve 20 has a stem 20, which is operable for opening said valve, by a lever 21, the lower end of which is pivoted at 21. To the upper end of lever 21 is pivoted one end of a rod 22, the other end of said rod being pivoted to an arm 23' of a lever 23, the latter being pivoted, as at 23, to a bracket 24, which is supported by the frame portion 2. The lever 23 has a depending curved portion 23 whichparallels the lower arm 9" of the beam- 9, andv the extreme lower end of the arm 23 is formed with a tooth 23, which faces and is arranged to frictionally engage a block or part 9, that projects from the rear face of the beam (see Figs 1 and 10) The arrangement of the block 9 and the tooth 23 is to the right and the arm 23 towards the such that, when the beam 9 is in the position shown by the dotted lines in-Fig. 1, and by the full lines in Fig. 10, the tooth 23 rides upon the lower rear face of the block 9, and when the beam is forced outwardly-by the action of the piston-rod 13, as to the ,full line position shown in Fig. 1 (or to the dotted position in Fig. 10), the initial movement of the beam tends to move the arm 23 left, for opening the valve 20, and spraying the buck 5 (see dotted lines in Figs. 1 and 9). This opening of valve 20 is timed to occur just after the head starts on its downward stroke. During the descent of the head, the beam 9 continues its outward movement, but before the said parts complete their movements, the tooth 23slips off the block 9, as shown by full lines in Fig.

1. This relieves the pressure against the valve stem 20 effected by the outward swing of the lever 23, and allows a spring (not shown) usually carried by the valve 20, to close said valve and stop the spraying before the head completes its downward or pressing'stroke. The subsequent raising of the head by the leftward movement of the arm 9", of the beam, does. not re-open the valve 20; but as the arm 9 swi'ngs inwardly towards the frame, the block 9 moves downwardly slightly and the tooth 23 trails back to its first position, with its point bearing against the rear face of the block, ready for the next spraying and pressing operation. It will be understood from the foregoing, that the spraying of garments carried by the buck 5, may be efl'ected at will,

by the operator first opening the cock 19,

after which the spraying will be repeated at each pressing stroke of the head, as long as the cook 19 remainsopen, --without requiring any attention of care on the part of the operator of the machine The control for the pressing machine, comprising the lever 17 and related parts, is so arranged that the headmayebe stopped at any point in its downward" or upward strokes, for the purpose of readjusting the garments before the final pressing operation, and for fanning, drying, or spraying 115 the cloth before, as well as after the pressing thereof. To accomplish the fanning of the fabric upon the buck, the operator simply grasps the handle of the lever 17 and then moves said lever in the proper direction for starting the movement of the head, after which the lever is moved back and forth in a succession of short and quick strokes, which imparts to the head the desired fanning movements; Dry steam may be sprayed upon the fabric during the fanning operations, if desired, by simply opening the cook 19*. To stop the head between the extremes of its strokes, the operator simply moves the lever 17 until it engages one 130 or the other of the corrugations 3, which are shown at one side of the slot 3', and lets the lever stand there. The lever 17 will stand still without the corrugations, but Will not be positively held in place.

25 represents a guard, comprising a strip of meta1,which is supported by a number of brackets 25, the latter being anchored in bosses 25 of the head 7, as best seen in Figs. Land 5. The guard 25 is positioned well below the planeof the surface 7., and prevents the operator from accidentally burning his hands and wrists while adjusting the garments on the buck 5. The guard 25 is usually dispensed with when the manifold 18 is employed. The guard may be supported by the manifold in a well-known manner (not shown). Figs. 6 and 9 show the head and buck provided with felt orother pads 26, for slightly cushioning the garments during the pressing thereof and avoiding contact of the bare metal with the garments.

The cylinder 14 is preferably mounted. on the inclined frame part 2, for the purpose of disposing the rod 13 substantially at right angles to the lower arm 9 of the beam, which is the angle of the least resistance.

By this disposition and arrangement of the parts, the full power of the piston rod is communicated to the beam, and through the latter is transmitted to the presser-head 7. Furthermore, directly connecting the piston rod tothe beam enables me to effectively operate the head with the use of fewer parts than heretofore. great saving in power, as well as materially reduces the cost of construction and the time and labor of assembling the machine.

Thus lessening the number of the working parts usually employed for operatively connecting the actuating means with the presser-head, eliminates considerable wear and tear and loss by friction, and also renders the present machine practically noiseless.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, is-

1. In a power pressing machine, a heated stationary buck and a heated movable presser head, a beam for operating said head, means for rocking said beam, a manifold comprising non-communicating chambers carried by said head adapted for spraying the garments carried by the buck with steam, one of said chambers receiving steam from the head for heating the whole manifold, independent means for supplying the spraying steam to the other chamber, and means connected with and controlled by the rocking movements of said beam for starting and stopping the spraying before the pressing of the garments is effected.

This feature efiects a 2. In a power pressing machine, a heated stationary buck and a movable heated presser-head, a beam for operating said head, means comprising a cylinder, a piston, and a piston-rod for rocking said beam, a leverand-link mechanism for controlling said piston and rod, a heated spraying manifoldmovable with the head, a valve for supplying steam to said manifold, a rod connecting the beam with said valve and opening said valve after the beam begins its downward movement, the said rod closing the valve before the beam completes its downward movement, and means for stopping the head at different points between the extremes of its upward and downward strokes. 3. In an automatic pressing machine, a stationary buck and a movable pressing head, both of said parts adapted to be heated by a continuous stream of a heating fluid, an arc-shaped beam for supporting and moving said head, a piston-rod for rocking said beam, a cylinder having a piston adapted to be actuated by the normal pressure of said heating medium, a hand-lever for controlling the action of the piston rod, said lever being movable in a slot whose sides are adapted to frictionally restrain the lever for stopping the head at different points between the extremes of its strokes. 4. The combination with a frame-and a hollow shaft journalled in the frame, of a crescent-shaped beam supported by said shaft, a presser-head supported by the forwardly extending top end of said beam, a

piston-rod reciprocatable by fluid pressure a stationary buck and a movable pressing I head, a source of heating fluid for heating the buck and head, a frame, a hollow shaft journalled in said frame, a beam supported by said shaft and movable therewith adapted to raise and lower said head during the pressing operations, a piston rod supported at an angle to said frame, the lower end of said beam being disposed in the plane of said angle and being directly connected to said piston rod, a cock controlling the fluid pressure that actuatessaid piston rod, and a mlimually operable lever for operating said (300 In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

' LEl/VIS. 

